Lily's Health Pad

Happy Sunday!  I hope you all are enjoying the last bit of your weekend.  I’m simultaneously blogging and watching the last half of Glee Season 1 on DVD.  I am just in love with Lea Michele’s voice.  Wow.

I have to say, I’m clutching on to the final hours of this weekend tightly.  I just don’t want it to be over!  Friday evening and Saturday afternoon, I was in Charlotte meeting up with Diana.  Once just bloggie friends, now we’re real life friends! 

Here’s a taste of our fun, but unfortunately, I’ll be leaving you hanging about the details of our meet-up until my next post.

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I was expecting today to be a quiet day spent solo.  Stephen had drill this weekend, so I had plans of watching documentaries, cleaning my apartment, and trying out some new recipes. 

Also, I was recently sent some cool products, and I knew today would be the perfect day to try them out!

First up:

Tipu’s Instant Black Chai

Unlike many chai powders, Tipu’s Chai does not include sugar, milk powder, non-dairy creamer, or chemicals.

It is simply tea and spices.  Cool, right?

In order to make a chai latte, I simply poured warm soymilk over the Tipu’s Chai. 

I also added 8 drops of NuNaturals Vanilla Stevia to the mix.

And the result was SO tasty.

And natural.  You can’t beat that!

Also this a.m., aloe vera juice made a comeback. 

This 1 gallon container only cost me $7.99 at Trader Joes!   My last bottle is long gone, so of course, I put this in my cart.

Annnnd, now that I’ve uploaded and expanded the above pic, the words ‘sodium bonzoate’ and ‘potassium sorbate’ are jumping out at me.

Ugh. 

Aloe Vera Juice benefits:

FYI- Statements not approved by the FDA.

Down the hatch: aloe vera juice, sodium bonzoate, potassium sorbate, and all.

While downing my chai latte and aloe vera juice, I cooked up some incredible waffles.

Courtesy of this mix, sent to me by the peeps at Mambo Sprouts

Arrowhead Mills Multigrain Pancake & Waffle Mix

The mix is made with 70% whole grains (corn flour, wheat flour, and brown rice flour), yet this waffle was light, fluffy, and not dense like those made with most whole grain mixes.

I’d recommend this mix to people seeking a healthier pancake or waffle yet are afraid of that “whole grain” taste.

I topped my waffle with a Grade A maple syrup, Trader Joe’s Almond and Flax butter, coconut oil, and cacao nibs.

Eaten while watching Resolved, an interesting documentary about high school debate.

After finishing the documentary and dozing off for an early morning nap, Stephen called.  He got out of National Guard drill early(!), so he was able to stop by my apartment for the afternoon.

We decided to go Halloween costume shopping.  We both adore Halloween, and anytime we drive by a costume shop, we must go in.

This particular Halloween Express store had a couple of costumes we’d never seen before.

Crazy Cat Lady??  That’s me!  I was seriously considering making a purchase!

Seriously.  I want this hat!

I found this costume and it immediately reminded me of Diana.

Stephen and I have been eyeing this costume at Target since last year.

What do you think?  Should Stephen be a chicken this year??

If Stephen’s a chicken, I’m totally going to be Big Bird.  For some reason I find this costume intriguing. 

After frolicking through costume aisles, we made a special trip to the Dollar Store in order to pick up a water gun.  Link has been having some discipline problems lately.  These problems include, but are not limited to: jumping on kitchen counters, scratching my couch, and biting my toes at 5 a.m.

Pretty sure this weapon is gonna do the trick!

But no, in reality, I bought a small spray bottle, and Link is going on a behavior plan.  Stat! 

As a psychologist, I’m leery of this negative reinforcement-based plan, but whatever, my sleep debt is willing to give anything a try when it comes to this incorrigible cat!

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Question: What are you going to be for Halloween this year?

P.S.-Don’t forget to enter my giveaway for a CSN Stores $35 credit!

Tags: chai, Link, waffles